The Secret World

Last fall, I found myself pushing hard through Transylvania and Tokyo because I was worried that I wouldn’t be “done” and caught up in time for the wave of promised new content that was due to start arriving in late 2017. Well, I fulfilled my end of the bargain; I’m finally caught up at the end of the main storyline and have a halfway-decent character who is ready to go on.

Funcom? It’s a whole heap of quiet over there. And no new content yet, I might add.

I think I’m disappointed in two things. On a small level, that the new stuff hasn’t happened yet. We know we’re due for three things: a “Dark Agartha” scenario, an agent system, and the start of season two in a new zone. At least some of this was supposed to happen last month and didn’t.

But the greater disappointment isn’t any delay, it’s that Funcom just isn’t talking with us. Aside from running the winter event last month, the studio’s been really quiet concerning SWL. It seems to be dealing with this game in spurts, giving it some attention before wandering away, and that’s a sign of a poor community management team (or a poor CM, period).

There just isn’t any info or talk coming out of the studio for fans. There aren’t any official forums, so Funcom primarily uses Reddit and Discord. I don’t hang out in Discord these days, but you’d think that a CM who has repeatedly promised WEEKLY communication updates and has delivered maybe three of them would pop over to the Reddit once in a while. About the only hope we have right now is the fact that some of the in-character NPCs are now talking once again on Twitter after a long silence.

Anyway, I’m sure there’s a delay and I’m sure we’re still due for more good stuff, but I’m tired of treading water in Tokyo. I can’t really bring myself to run the same Tokyo missions I’ve already done for no new story or better rewards, so other than logging in once a day to get my free key, I’m just not going to play until or unless Funcom pops out some new content. I am shaking my head here, because Secret World Legends had some good momentum last summer, but it feels like the studio has squandered that and once again turned its back on this game.

Office naps? I could totally work at Orochi. You know, if it wasn’t for the unlimited horrors that all of the floors seem to contain.

I’m actually really glad that Funcom decided to make us go through all of the floors in a linear fashion, because there are some downright interesting levels that I hadn’t seen yet. It’s definitely some of the best environmental storytelling that the team has put out to date, with tales that are in turn funny, sad, and downright creepy.

I could have done without the poltergeist level, though.

Do you think that Orochi cuts out the middleman and just hires corpses? I really, really should have kept a tally this time through the game.

So pretty. So deadly. Orochi Tower was a good excuse for Funcom to reuse assets and ideas from all over the game, including killer, out-of-control fungi.

I probably felt the worst on this level, which featured a “Bee” from The Hive who was subject to numerous amputations (since he could regrow his limbs) as Orochi studied animated flesh. Wasn’t sure if he was dead or not… I think so, but otherwise I would have appreciated a way to free him.

There was one floor with the lights completely out. Could have done without that as well.

Weirdest floor? Pac-Man. Definitely wasn’t expecting this, but got a few good belly laughs out of it.

Finally to the Penthouse I went and faced down Lilith for a second time in my Secret World history. Much of what she said made more sense this time around, although I did think that the whole conclusion took far longer than it should’ve.

Oh hai, Deus Ex Machina! I won’t lie, it was pleasant to see Lilith get her comeuppance for once. Although I did notice this time around that Emma was pretty absent from the proceedings. Wonder what her story is going to be going forward.

Took a short breather on my way back to London to smackdown Hel. I only have about 14 or so of those snowflakes left, but I don’t know if I have 14 fights left in me, especially since they’re timed on the hour.

It’s been one VERY long intermission so far. C’mon Funcom, let’s get on with it!

2017 was an interesting year for my MMO gaming career. It wasn’t really marked by any super-huge new releases; in fact, the year was pretty anemic for new MMOs, period. We’re still seeing lots in development, but only a handful of big budget, big studio projects, and most of those are for the future. Instead, this year was mostly about returning to old favorites and continuing on in my adventures.

I am really glad that I’ve been doing a monthly “gaming goals” article, because it helps me track what I was playing over the course of the year. This was the first year where I fully did that, and it is neat to look back at my aspirations vs. realities while also following the threads of my gaming life. So with that in mind, here are the six MMOs that dominated my gaming time this year:

1. World of Warcraft

This past spring, I felt the need for a break following a nearly two-year run in the game. I was feeling listless and in need of variety and direction, and I am glad I took the time off. But sandwiched around that break were my continuing journeys in Legion, my endless experimentation with alts, my progress as an Undead Warlock (the highest I’ve ever leveled one to date!), and some excitement over Battle for Azeroth and Classic. I’m ending this year mostly focusing on bringing my Gnome Hunter up to speed while giving equal time to other titles.

2. Dungeons and Dragons Online

DDO was really the surprise experience this year for me. When I went back to dabble a little bit in it, little did I know that the DDO bug would bite me hard once more. I should have remembered how much I was in love with this game back in the day, and it’s only grown since then. I’ve had some amazing quests so far with my Gnome Artificer, although I still haven’t really found a guild that’s very active or involved. Hoping to change that in the new year, and also to see the game’s expansions as I start to get up into the double digits.

3. Lord of the Rings Online

This was pretty much a steadfast experience, taking my Lore-master through the remainder of Gondor and then finally into Mordor with the fall’s expansion. While I did try out some alts (Minstrel, Hunter), most all of my time was given to the LM. Mordor proved to be a tough slog with only a handful of interesting and engaging moments, and my enthusiasm for playing started to sap away by the end of the year. Still, I’m excited about Northern Mirkwood for 2018, so there’s hope left!

4. Secret World Legends

I had to say farewell to The Secret World and my character of five years this spring, and while that definitely was a hard blow, at least Legends injected some new life into this faltering title. Taking a new character through the game and getting her back up to where I had left off pretty much consumed my attention for the remainder of 2017, and hopefully by the time the new year clicks over, I’ll be ready for season two.

5. Star Trek Online

I think I had about a two- or three-month run back in STO, doing some of the newer content while dusting off my carrier and fleshing out missions I hadn’t run yet. It was… fine, I guess, but definitely not as memorable as I was hoping nor as long-lasting as trips back to the game in the past.

6. Guild Wars 2

Guild Wars 2 edges out FFXIV on this list by virtue of time, if nothing else. I put in about two months in this game vs. one in FFXIV, but both ultimately conveyed to me that I just wasn’t in the mindset to come back to either. There are so many things that I enjoy about GW2 but also so many things that really drive me nuts about this game that I can’t settle back into what used to be an MMO gaming mainstay for me.

Honorable mention: Elder Scrolls Online

Tossing this into this list because I should mention ESO for a few reasons. I really did want to get more into this game than I did, at one point vowing to make this my main summer title (which worked out as well as my plans usually do). But the allure of housing and the new expansion did get me to put in a few sessions, and it remains very, very high on my list of games to come back to soon.

I stopped being as afraid or respectful of “John” when it turned out that he was an insecure ex-cultist who lives in mortal terror of an endgame boss that I’ve already faced. At least I get respect for having my legs lasered off by a near-immortal being.

The race to finish Tokyo by the end of December — the main storyline, at least — is definitely on. As of this past week, I finally got the “come on in” from John and raced inside to start working my way up the tower.

Hey Lilith? You’re kind of a jerk, do you know that? I don’t care how many names you have, taking someone’s legs is Not Okay.

So I was pretty keen to see what Funcom did with the structure of Orochi tower. Back in The Secret World, it was kind of designed to be a repeatable, semi-randomized experience that players could run over and over again as we waited for the team to put the final touches on the conclusion of the area. I don’t think a lot of people really liked the randomization, especially when you were trying to access certain floors for achievement, but I kind of gave up on it after a half-dozen runs or so.

Now? Now it looks like we progress through Orochi Tower in a much more linear and methodical fashion. To “climb the tower,” you have to do a handful of floors from each of the eight sub-companies. While this will be quite lengthy, I really do like this idea. There was a lot of work and a lot of environmental storytelling going on with these floors, and I’d like to experience them.

“Tastes like despair” — tell me that’s a Better Off Ted reference! Because that show deserves to be referenced by an evil science company like Orochi.

You really never know what you’re going to get with these floors, either. Some are much more combat oriented, while others have very little other than cubicles and boardrooms. Yet there are a lot of these weird stories going on, like how this one scientist is attacking an ever-growing piece of meat with a chainsaw while her friend looks on from behind safety glass. I like how nobody seems perturbed in the least that I, a stranger with a shotgun and superpowers, am roaming about the place.

My climb has started, but it’s got a ways to go. Since we’re in mid-December and we haven’t heard about when the new batch of content is coming, I’m going to assume that it’s not going to happen until the new year. I guess there’s the Christmas event, but Secret World always underwhelmed me with this holiday. It’s Halloween or bust, in this game.

You never know what can be behind a door in Secret World. Could be a sugar-crazed hacker who is more than willing to fight on your side, could be a group of ambushing filth monsters. Doesn’t stop me from knocking and opening, though.

The whirlwind tour through Tokyo’s main storyline continues. I don’t remember it being this long, but then again, last time I only encountered it in segments as it was released. This time I’m being treated to the whole saga of Orochi, Fear Nothing, Gozen, and Killer Bunnies in sequence. It continues to be both fascinating, disturbing, and infuriating.

Infuriating because I had to go through that apartment of booby traps again. That’s a whole lot of work to keep some bunnies out, man.

I think every Secret World player has his or her favorite NPCs, but we also have those that get discarded as not being truly worth our attention. Jake Hama is that for me. Never connected with his character or what he was about, possibly because he is drunk and speaks in Japanese the whole time, but that’s how it goes. A weird costume does not a captivating character make.

Soon after the underground garage and the Fear Nothing Foundation headquarters, I’m sent into the next part of this horror trifecta: the Clubhouse.

This is one of the longer missions and a truly momentous setpiece. It begins in a youth clubhouse where everyone’s been slaughtered (or, like the picture above suggests, committed suicide with doll promptings). It was supposed to be a bunker of sorts against outside incursion, but the Filth got in and turned the place into a charnel house.

The “cocoon room” never ceases to give me the willies. You really have to hear all of the sound effects of these gestating eggs to get the full effect. Just never go in the water — trust me.

Then after the youth clubhouse part is this massive temple room that just so happens to play host to a grumpy Filth creature. Oh, and there’s a kitchen with ghosts and really sad journal entries all around spelling out the final moments of these poor kids — cast-offs of the Virgula Divina program.

Just when you think that mission is going on forever, there’s a final part of the Clubhouse in the basement office that’s somehow more disturbing than everything else that came before it. Could be the supernaturally quick killer bunny, or perhaps the emergency lighting.

Listening to the drunken speech of this Morninglight scum gave me chills this time, especially as I was thinking about season two. The Dark Days are coming, but they aren’t quite here yet. The world is ending, but hasn’t quite gotten as bad as it could. All I keep asking myself is… what is Exodus? And does it mean that there is some possibility of saving this world or at least some of its people?

Every Secret World player has his or her opinion on which zone of the game is the most creepy, and while I would put Savage Coast right up there at number two, Tokyo has to take the cake for me. It’s full of ghosts and creepy girl-things and midnight slaughters and evil cults and the apocalypse to boot. I was forcefully reminded of what this area is capable of when I hit the one-two main storyline punch of Contract Killers and The Pachinko Model.

Seriously, in a row are two of the most creeptastic quests this game has ever produced, and even having done them before, I was incredibly reluctant to man up and do them again. But as main quests, I had no choice. Time to roll up my sleeves, grit my teeth, and wait until it was broad daylight at home and my wife was sitting in the room 10 feet from me.

As I said on Twitter, any time that Secret World asks you to go into an underground parking garage, you slap that game right across its face and say “No THANK you, sir!” and storm out of the room. Nothing good ever happens in underground parking garages here.

At least I knew what was going to happen, and so to help take the edge off my fright, I made it a mission to try to screenshot some of the more intense moments. You know, like the “red room” section with the ghost girl on the ceiling who is draining your life force. Fun times.

And then there was this. It’s just such a terrifying mission where you go down, down into the dark and only when you get to the bottom does the real horror begin. Can you make it back out? The trick here is to think of the little girls as the Weeping Angels from Doctor Who — never turn your back on one. Never blink.

Then right after that I’m sent right into the headquarters of the Fear Nothing Foundation (AKA Japanese Morninglight). It seems that there’s a helpful kid ghost in this one, although I don’t know what’s their story. Could have done with a friendly wave or a Casper-esque appearance rather than being a black shape from across the room staring at me. I get enough of that in real life.

I have a weird weakness for always taking my character’s picture whenever there’s an in-game mirror. At least you all know that I washed my hands after I looted.

Tried to get a good shot of this bloody white ghost girl, but the camera wasn’t always on my side. Plus, there’s that whole “get near her and she one-shots you” thing, so I had to keep my distance.

I was pretty proud that after doing FNF three times previous, I was able to zip through this one in record time.

“Stay with us.”

Um, thanks but no thanks. I’ve had enough with the apocalypse cults. They never make good on their promise of happiness and power.

Making headway on Tokyo… but still not to the end just yet. It’s going to feel so great when I finally reach the point where I left off with my old TSW character. Some days I really can’t believe that I did all of this all over again.

Don’t get me wrong, Tokyo is an amazing zone. It took forever to be fully built, this is true, but the final result is an incredibly detailed metropolis slathered with a post-apocalyptic feel. It’s got some highly memorable NPCs and quests, that whole Fear Nothing Foundation quest that’s one of the most terrifying things this game has ever cooked up, and a terrific storytelling climax in the Orochi Tower. It’s the end of the first season of the game’s mythos, bringing us to Ground Zero of the filth bomb and exploring what really happened to trigger the end of days.

But… I’m kind of done with it. It hit me this past week as I was dutifully going through these quests and not feeling particularly excited about them. That seemed weird to me, since I have only really done most of these missions once on my old TSW character, but when I started to think about it, it made sense. Tokyo has been out in the game for literally years at this point. It’s been the “endgame” of the story for a long time now, and I’m probably not alone in being ready to move on from it. It’s kind of like when you outgrow a place — say, a school or your childhood home — and you’re just ready to go to the next step. We’ve been spinning our wheels in Tokyo for too long now, and instead of being a captivating part of the adventure, it feels like a delaying tactic (much like how Venice felt like an extended intermission between Transylvania and Tokyo).

I can’t help it. I keep thinking “what’s next” and am starting to get a little concerned that I won’t have all of this wrapped up in time for whatever Funcom is planning with Dark Agartha, the agent system, and season two. We might still have a while yet, but I wouldn’t mind having the main storyline all done.

So after a week of going clockwise around the map, I put that on hold to follow the blue missions to their conclusion.

I’m also vowing to pay a little more attention to the story. I have a feeling that I’ve missed some of it or have forgotten what I did learn a while back, leaving a question mark why I’m diving into a Japanese hell to chase a demon for reasons unknown. Probably to get flattened by these giant boulders, which must be a PAIN in the rear for the bad guys to roll back up and reset for the next traveler. I’d feel sorrier for them if I wasn’t ground into paste.

At least I can continue to thank my lucky stars that I’m not fiddling around with AEGIS. I keep finding myself flinching when a mob attacks because I’ve been conditioned to look for a shield type and try to quickly swap what I have. But no, now I can simply attack. I appreciate that, I do.